The subject of Lyme disease is such a broad,complex and controversial subject.

During a lot of my own research  I have come across some very encouraging  things to help enhance your quality of life as one is trying to recover from this potentially debilitating disease.

So what is Lyme disease???

Simply put Lyme Disease is a bacterial infection (caused by a spirochete  bacterium called borrelia burgdorferi , but there are  also other strains of borrelia) usually transmitted thru an infected tick bite. One of the bacterium’s first jobs is to start to produce neuro toxins in your body.  Unfortunately ticks  many times also carry co-infections along with it  too which can also mimic Lyme or be even worse than Lyme’s itself. . Most people who are affected with Lyme can outwardly look to be healthy , even while  having normal blood work when tested and  at the same time can have  severe symptoms. This is why many times it is called “the invisible illness”.

Symptoms

Lyme Disease symptoms mimic many other diseases making it extremely hard  and challenging to correctly diagnose.

Other misdiagnosed illnesses  it mimics are : MS (Multiple Schlerosis), Alzheimers,chronic fatique,arthritis, ALS ,Parkinsons, and  as well as over 350 and more other diseases including fibromyalgia.
Symptoms of this disease can vary greatly but the most common start out with flu like symptoms .
Others include headaches, migratory muscle and joint pain ,poor sleep,poor memory and brain function,chronic  fatigue,lethargy,and digestive issues. Over time the symptoms worsen and can turn into a  chronic inflammation response in the body that can be similar to an autoimmune sickness.
Many doctors will not acknowledge that Lyme disease can be chronic in nature . Because of this some doctors will not treat a patient longer than typically 4 weeks or so and put the patient of repeated ,long courses of antibiotics .
Long term antibiotic regimens have shown to not be successful and also does much harm to the gut microbiome which will further weaken your natural immune response even more. . Having  a good healthy gut microbiome is critical to getting better. Remember most of the immune system resides in the gut. Feeding it with good, healthy bacteria (probiotics) will help to improve your immune system which is very important in dealing with Lyme. Antibiotics in the case of Lyme Disease is virtually useless and destroy all the good bacteria in the gut exasperating the disease even further.
The Lyme spirochete  and bartonella bacteria can burrow into our cells causing it to be extremely difficult to “cure” . However there are some things out there that can greatly improve your quality of life and outcome when battling this potentially debilitating disease and also help to guard against recurrences. I will discuss them further below.

Another unfortunate  thing with Lyme Disease is that it can affect the heart . In fact any organ of the body, nervous system , brain , muscles and joints to name just  a few . It has potential to do great harm in the body if it is left to go  unchecked. It only gets worse as the disease progresses.
Some doctors also believe that the same bacteria can also possibly be transmitted from other insects too such as mosquitos,mites,gnats, spiders and fleas.

Testing

There are two main tests doctors perform to check for an infection. They are the ELISA test (short for Enzyme immunosorbent assay) and  something called an Immunoblot or “Western Blot test”. If both tests turn out positive it is quite certain you have Lyme’s. The problem is these two tests are many times not reliable. The spirochete bacterium in Lyme can at times affect your white blood cells. If this happens than your white blood cells would not be able to respond properly to an infection in a normal way. So the worse your infection gets ,than the more likely it will not show up on your blood test.These two tests need normal functioning white blood cells in order to make the antibiodies they measure.. This  therefore many times  can make these tests unreliable when diagnosing . Also testing too soon will also produce non accurate results because the body needs at least a few weeks to make antibiodies in response to the presence of the Lyme bacteria.

The Borellia Culture Test is considered the closest test to 100 % accuracy in finding the live infection  in people. However the company that puts out this test ,Advanced Laboratory Services, needs the blood sample  within 24 hours of being drawn  because of the way the live Lyme bacterium needs to be cultured and because the bacterium does not survive long outside of the host.
For this reason  any good doctor should  go by your symptoms and good laboratory tests to try and make an accurate diagnosis because of the inaccuracies these tests by themselves can display. Currently no Lyme disease test  claims to be 100% accurate.

Another test that is also may be  quite effective in diagnosing Lyme is direct microscopy. One laboratory that performs this test in Fry Labs in Arizona. It is also performed by some holistic doctors in combination with a physical exam while performing an analysis of a person’s symptoms.

Five powerful things that help with Lyme Disease

1. Monolaurin. 
This is a  chemical made from lauric acid that is richly  abundant in breast milk and coconut products especially the milk.
It is mainly used as a microbicide. This  is a substance that can minimize the  probability of infection from  microbes like viruses ,fungi and bacteria. It has been shown to kill all bad bacteria including the antibiotic resistant Lyme  all  without harming the good bacteria. It is also beneficial  at killing co- infections like babesiosis.
The best form to take is the Monolaurin pellets. Begin taking them in smaller amounts and work your way up to the dosage that seems to work best for you. Remember to start slowly to avoid a herxheimer effect ( a short term detox reaction as large amounts of pathogens are being killed off faster than the body can handle  possibly producing a temporarily worsening of symptoms (called a “die off”). Don’t get discouraged if this happens or quit. You just need to cut back on the dosage and slowly work up to your ideal dosage.  Adults should start with 1/2 scoop of the pellets for a few days and work up to a full scoop teaspoon daily for ongoing immune support. Increase temporarily  to twice daily during times of sickness or under heavy stress.
For children or anyone under 130 pounds work up slowly to 1/2 teaspoon a day. Typically people can spend upwards to   thousands of dollars on failed treatments. Monolaurin is way better ,cheaper, all natural, backed by multiple clinical studies  and covers a wide arena of issues. Also it  does  not interfere with any other treatments.

2.Biofilm enzymes.
A biofilm is a slimy coating  the bad bacteria surround them self with to shield themselves  from antibiotics and the immune system. Fibrin (a protein) is the main building material used in making this protective coating . Biofilm enzymes help to dissolve these protective biofilms so the monolaurin and the immune system  can get in and do its job in killing the bad microbes. This is also why Lyme Disease is antibiotic resistant. There are nine enzymes specifically that work wonderful together in dissolving the biofilms protective coating . Here is a good biofilm enzyme to try. Also talk to your doctor first if you are on any blood thinning drugs before taking these enzymes..

3. Boost the immune system.
Their are several ways to doing this. Consume  plenty of  probiotic rich foods  and beverages like fermented sauerkraut(see recipe here), and water keefir (see recipe here) . Also taking a high quality probiotic is very helpful as well. I recommend this one. Probiotics boost the immune system ,heal the gut and put lots of good bacteria back  in the intestinal track.  To learn more about probiotics click here.
Consume plenty of high antioxidant foods like lots of fresh fruits and vegetables ( including lots of dark leafy greens and berries) while cutting way back on sugars and grains(known to suppress the immune system). Try to eat as clean as possible.

4. Improve cellular function and protection.
The bacteria in Lyme along with parasites and other viruses can attack  your good, healthy cells and weaken your defenses. The following list of supplements help to restore cellular health.
B-Complex
Medicinal mushrooms
Turmeric  See how to make our super bioavailable golden milk drink here.
Vitamin D ( anywhere from 5-6,ooo IU’s have been found to be beneficial)
Omega 3 fatty acids   I get mine from a high quality krill oil. 
Magnesium. This one  is highly absorbable

5. Manage negative emotions and get plenty of rest.

Stress and anxiety are killers and greatly suppress the immune system . You need to get these emotions under control . One good way to do that is stay positive . Also  surround yourself with a positive support system. Another  thing that greatly helps me is prayer . My faith in God has brought me thru many ugly things and is the main reason I believe I  am still here.  I have to say Jesus has never let me down yet. He has always been faithful  to really carry me thru and have peace when circumstances dictate  not too.

A person needs anywhere between 8-10 hours of sleep each night to function optimally . During a restful night of  sleep is when the body begins to heal and repair itself. It is essential to getting well.

Important update:
It has been found that something as simple and as  inexpensive as stevia leaf extract is having much better success at killing the Lyme bacteria than even conventional antibiotics. Some researchers at the University of New Haven found that stevia leaf extracted with alcohol kills the Lyme in all its forms including the very hard to kill kind with the biofilms. The Lyme’s bacteria surround themselves with a protective biofilm so that antibiotics have a very hard time penetrating to kill them. Wow!! This is very promising news !! This is a good one to try here. Remember this one is not to be used as a sweetener however.
It is highly recommended that you check with your physician first before starting any protocol. 

This is a man I highly esteem for his wealth of health knowledge, Dr. Axe. He writes more extensive about it.You can see the article here.

Tips for prevention of Lyme Disease

All this talk about this epidemic disease , I now want to mention a few things you can do on your part to hopefully avoid an infection.
Try to avoid going into heavily wooded areas if at all possible. If it can not be avoided then I highly recommend an all natural but potent blend of essential oils to help persuade those little suckers from hitchhiking onto you ( see my recipe below).I do not recommend any of the highly toxic chemical sprays (especially the ones with Deet). They will create more problems than solve because they are so highly toxic to your health,nervous system and liver.  Oh yes ,they will possibly maybe help a tick to not latch on ,but not without a cost to you.  No matter what you put on ,you should still always do a thorough tick check whenever coming in from the outdoors to be on the safe side.
Another thing is it will greatly help to keep your immune system functioning at its best so that if you did contract Lyme it would not be as devastating to your health because a strong immune system in more likely to keep things in check   inside your body and do its job at attacking invaders before they start to do damage to your health.
Lastly, make sure you wear long, light colored  pants, long sleeves and hats when possible  in tick infested areas to make them easier to spot. Like mentioned earlier , always do a thorough tick check when back from the outdoors especially in heavily wooded and very grassy areas.

So hopefully reading this post has helped to inform you and possibly  help protect you and  your loved one’s while enjoying the great outdoors.
Remember, Lyme Disease is nothing to fear when you are equipped with plenty of  good knowledge to prevent illness  and also to  help in your journey  to getting well and staying well!!

Recipe for Potent All Natural Tick Repellent

one spray bottle
2 cups water

20 drops Peppermint Oil
20 drops Rose geranium Oil
20 drops Cedarwood Oil
20 drops Citronella Oil
30 drops Lemongrass Oil
1 Tablespoon  Organic Vanilla Extract

Put all ingredients in a spray bottle , shake well before each use and be safe!! (Note: Can be sprayed on skin and clothing. NOT to be used on pets !!)

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